Home > Power play: If David Ortiz hits the market, who has the leverage?

Power play: If David Ortiz hits the market, who has the leverage?

Scott Lauber Thursday, November 01, 2012

In the end, David Ortiz and the Red Sox will stay together. Doing so simply makes too much sense for both sides.

But that doesn't mean there may not be some drama along the way.

The Red Sox have only until 12:01 a.m. Saturday to negotiate exclusively with Ortiz. If they don't have a deal before that deadline, the Sox will make a qualifying offer of $13.3 million, the average of baseball's top 125 salaries, in order to guarantee they will receive draft-pick compensation if he signs elsewhere. Ortiz made $14.575 million this year, so it's unlikely he would accept the qualifying offer, which would be tantamount to signing a one-year contract at a reduced salary, especially when the 36-year-old slugger continues to crave a two-year deal and could reopen negotiations with other teams.

And so, it would seem Big Papi would have leverage over the Sox if he hits the open market.

Then again ...

A year ago, Ortiz reached free agency and hardly was inundated with offers. Even though he was coming off a 2011 season in which he batted .309 with 29 home runs, 96 RBI and a .953 OPS, Ortiz found the market to be relatively depressed, most teams preferring to treat the DH position like a revolving door rather than employing one full-time DH. The Yankees, for instance, could have benefited from Ortiz' bat but believed they could rest members of their aging lineup by rotating Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Raul Ibanez, Andruw Jones and others in the DH spot. The Orioles and Blue Jays took a similar tack before Ortiz accepted arbitration and returned to the Red Sox on a one-year contract.

Ortiz had another highly productive season, batting .318 with a 1.026 OPS and 23 homers in only 324 at-bats before missing the season's final two months with a strained right Achilles. And the Orioles may reconsider their stance on designated hitters after declining their $11 million option on Mark Reynolds. Chances are, though, Ortiz' appeal on the open market wouldn't change much, especially because signing him would require any team to relinquish its first-round pick.

Moreover, Ortiz is well-aware of his iconic status within the Red Sox organization after a decade with the team. The last remaining member of both the 2004 and 2007 World Series winners, he's a link to the past and a big part of the immediate future. And his value never was more evident than after he was sidelined this season and the Red Sox traded Adrian Gonzalez, their only other veteran middle-of-the-order power threat. Principal owner John Henry always has had a soft spot for Ortiz, who still figures to get a better offer from the Red Sox than any other team.

As John Tomase wrote in today's Herald, both sides have expressed optimism that a deal can be reached, preferably before Saturday. And although the Red Sox still could reach an agreement with Ortiz after Saturday's deadline, they would then have to woo him away from other suitors, which could turn an apparent slam dunk into a more complicated situation.